A number of business persons have been featured in our list of inspiring and successful Filipino entrepreneurs. While the story of business success, in itself, may be considered as inspiring by many, there’s a special ring to rags-to-riches stories.

Take, for instance, the interesting article on the 10 Truly Inspiring Rags to Riches Stories published by the Huffington Post. The list includes John D. Rockefeller, the first person in the world with a net worth of a billion dollars. Rockefeller was born in 1839 to a poor family, with a lumberman as a father. At age 16, he started working as an assistant bookeeper in a small firm. He eventually founded a global oil company, Standard Oil.

Andrew Carnegie, one of the wealthiest American business titans, was born in Scotland to a family of handloom weaver. Carnegie was so poor when he was a child, he would sleep early to “forget the misery of hunger.” Talk show titan Oprah Winfrey, who, in her childhood, lived in a farm while her unwed teenage mother went out looking for work. There’s also fashion icon and businessman Ralph Lauren, who dropped out of school and worked as a clerk.

From Asia, there’s Li Ka-Shing, now one of the region’s wealthiest billionaires. To support his family, Li Ka-Shong first worked in a factory when he was 15. Incidentailly, Manuel “MVP” Pangilinan once said that he wouldn’t waste time listening to business speakers unless he happens to be someone like Li-Ka Shing.

There are countless other entrepreneurs who rose from poverty and made it big in the business world. These are inspiring stories, yes, but, more importantly, these stories show that with the right attitude, the right skills and the right circumstances, entrepreneurs can indeed make it big.